


Leah's merry crisis

by GalileoSunshine



Category: Love Live! Sunshine!!
Genre: Christmas, Christmas Party, Confessions, F/F, First Kiss, Mistletoe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-31
Updated: 2018-12-31
Packaged: 2019-10-01 03:14:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,887
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17236301
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GalileoSunshine/pseuds/GalileoSunshine
Summary: Saint Snow and Aqours are holding a Christmas party at Chika's inn, but Leah can only think of one thing - kissing Ruby underneath the mistletoe. Written as part of the Love Live Secret Santa 2018 exchange!





	Leah's merry crisis

**Author's Note:**

> My gift for Darth Fluffy (@dart-hfluffy on tumblr)! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

It was Christmas time in Uchiura, and the city’s decorations reflected the season. Every house had lights hung, bathing them in swathes of red and green light. Wreaths were adorned on streetlights, ornamented Christmas trees were set in park corners, and festive music filled the air.

And for Kazuno Leah, there was one more thing that made the season all the livelier. She and her sister had come down from Hokkaido to spend Christmas Eve with the rest of Aqours… which meant she got to see Ruby. Leah didn’t want to just _see_ Ruby, however. For this Christmas party, Leah had a very specific plan in mind.

She was going to kiss Ruby underneath the mistletoe.

Just thinking about it made her face flare up in red. Usually she’d never do something so bold, not to mention something so cheesy, but given the current status of their relationship Leah thought she had to take some drastic measures.

In the past year that they’ve been dating, Ruby never wanted to take their relationship any further. They had held hands, sure, and they had cuddled. They would spend the night in each other’s rooms anytime one of them visited the other on holidays. Ruby even surprised Leah once with a peck on the cheek, when she felt especially emotional seeing Leah leave for her gate at the airport. But it was a quick, chaste kiss that passed so quickly, Leah barely had time to register that it happened before it was over.

And any other time Leah thought the mood was good, that the flow of the situation might lead to something… more, Ruby would suddenly back away, red dusting across her features. It would be maddeningly frustrating if she weren’t so cute.

Well, if Ruby was going to be all shy about this, then Leah was going to have to take matters into her own hands. Of course, there was no way could she could kiss Ruby on her own either, and in this respect she understood the girl. And so… the mistletoe plan was clearly the only option, right?

If it all seemed set up, then she didn’t have to be embarrassed about initiating a kiss… right?

Right…

* * *

And that’s how Leah found herself, gathered with the rest of Aqours, in Chika’s inn. Chika’s family allowed them to use a special large parlor room, so long as they didn’t make too much noise and bother the guests. Leah had already hung the mistletoe earlier.

There was really only one place to put it. The ceiling of the room was too high for her to reach on her own. And so, as she and her sister were coming in, Leah had walked just slightly behind everybody, and while no one was looking behind her, she slapped on the fake piece of leafage on the frame of the doorway. It wasn’t the most ideal position, but she knew going in that much of the plan would have to be extemporaneous, so she contented herself with that.

Now it was just a matter of trying to get Ruby underneath it.

Meanwhile, across the room, Chika was practically bouncing on her haunches as she talked with Sarah as they sat at a low table. “I’m so glad you two could make it!” she was saying.

“Yeah, us too,” Sarah answered. “It’s really been a while!”

 “Hard to believe that it’s been a year since everyone was together like this,” Dia said next to her. “How’s college treating you by the way?”

Sarah laughed and scratched the back of her head. “Well, like I said, busy. But at the same time, compared to high school I feel like I’ve never had more free time in my life… if that makes sense.”

“I know what you mean! This year I…”

And so they went on.

In contrast, Leah remained quiet. She was content to let her older sister do the talking, while she tried to think of some way to have both her and Ruby end up underneath the mistletoe as naturally as possible.

Well, with everyone moving around, Ruby was sure to end up by the door at some point, right? So perhaps the easiest way was to just stand by the door and wait for Ruby to come to her. Yeah, that was as good a place to start as any. She just needed a decent excuse to stand by the door.

Leah stood up. “Excuse me, I have to… uh, use the bathroom!”

“Oh, but you just got here!” Chika said.

“… it was a long trip,” Leah fibbed.

“Well, okay! Do you remember where it is?”

“Yeah! I think remember from last time.”

Before she lost her nerve, Leah quickly exited the room and made her way through the corridors to the restroom. When she got there, she took the opportunity to wash her face with water. This was a lot more nerve-wracking then she thought it’d be. Or maybe it was just her own mind working against her. There was nothing weird about asking to use the bathroom right?

Oh well, it was no use worrying about it now…

Leah stayed in the bathroom for a minute or two, just for good measure, before heading back. When she reached the living room, instead of going to her previous spot at the table, she stayed by the entrance, right underneath where she hung the mistletoe.

She was in position. Now to wait for Ruby.

While she was away in the bathroom, Yoshiko had started some kind of mystical ritual, waving her hands over her pentagram tarp that had been spread across the table and chanting nonsensical words. Mari was encouraging her by filming it all on her smartphone and cheering along, and Riko was sighing all the while besides.

Kanan was also shaking her head at the two, but she was more focused on flipping through channels on the TV. Hanamaru sat a ways away, absorbed in her own book. Chika, You, and Dia were still talking with Sarah.

…where was Ruby? The whole plan hinged on her.

And that’s when the redhead decided to sneak up behind Leah and tap her on the shoulder.

“Hi Leah-chan! How are you?” Ruby said with an affectionate smile.

“Uwah!” Leah jumped in a very undignified way. She gathered herself together as quickly as she could. “I’m uh… I’m good!”

Leah blushed over how dumb and unrevealing the reply was. She wasn’t good with spontaneous conversation. Ruby, however, only giggled in that oh so cute and oh so very Ruby way that set Leah’s heart aflutter.

“Good is good!” she said encouragingly.

 _Heck, I love you_ , Leah thought. And then, _No wait! Focus!_

The plan! Ruby was here now. She just had to point out the mistletoe above them.

Ah, but not right away. She had to make it seem like she didn’t know it was up there either, like she only just noticed. She had to keep the conversation going for a bit first…

“Uh, how are you, Ruby?” Leah said.

“I’m… good too,” Ruby answered, giggling again for repeating what Leah had said. “It’s nice to be with everyone after so long! Especially my big sister, I’ve missed her.” Ruby got this dreamy look in her eyes as she turned to look at Dia.

“That’s good,” Leah said. Sheesh, couldn’t she say anything else besides the word ‘good’?

“And…” Ruby continued. “I’m really happy to see you again, Leah-chan! I’ve missed you too!”

Leah gulped. “S-same here. I missed you too, Ruby.”

They really hadn’t been apart that long since they last saw each other. Ruby had visited her in Hakodate on Labor Thanksgiving Day*, which was only a month ago. But still, for the two long-distance lovers, any amount of time apart seemed like years. No amount of texting could beat seeing Ruby face to face.

Ruby also seemed to realize the implications of what she said, and a small tinge of pink began to bloom on her face.

 _Ah man, the mood is really good!_ Leah thought. Now was the perfect time to spring the mistletoe. Leah opened her mouth to speak–

“By the way!” Ruby cut her off. “Why are you just standing by the door Leah-chan?”

“Eh?” Leah stammered. “W-well, no reason really…”

“You should come join everyone!”

“No, I…”

“C’mon!” Ruby grabbed her hand, and started to lead her further inside the room…

…away from the mistletoe.

“No, Ruby, I’m…!” Leah resisted, and Ruby stopped in her tracks, looking back at Leah with a questioning look. Leah scrambled to find some excuse not to leave the spot, but her mind was coming up blank.

“Oh…are you feeling nervous?” Ruby said. “It has been a while since you last saw everyone.”

That was completely off the mark, but Leah couldn’t say that without revealing her intentions. Not to mention, Ruby was being so considerate. Maybe that was why Leah didn’t resist again when Ruby pulled on her hand the second time.

“It’s ok!” Ruby said with a small laugh. “I promise everyone’s still as nice as before!”

Leah’s heart melted, and she let herself be dragged into the room.

There goes her chance. Oh well, she’d just have to think of another plan. And besides, being able to hold Ruby’s hand wasn’t so bad either…

“Welcome back!” You welcomed Leah back with a little salute.

“Uh, yeah, I’m back,” Leah said.

“Leah-chan was feeling a little shy,” Ruby teased.

“Well, you’re just in time to see Yoshiko exorcise this mikan!”

Apparently, the orange had spontaneously rolled off the table and surprised Chika, and Yoshiko was convinced that it must’ve been possessed. The excising process now also involved candles, and Riko was quick to point out the fire hazard. Mari called her a party-pooper and continued filming, while Maru was fact-checking proper exorcism techniques on her own phone, and pointing out all the things Yoshiko was doing wrong.

Leah sighed and settled herself in for what might be a long night of this group’s antics.

* * *

After having chatted with the rest of Aqours for a while, and played some other party games, Leah thought it might be time to make another attempt at the mistletoe.

“Chika-san, I’m a bit thirsty. Mind if I get a drink?”

“Sure, no problem!” came Chika’s reply.

“Actually, I might as well get everyone drinks, while I’m at it. Ruby, wanna help me?”

“Of course!” Ruby said.

Leah cheered on the inside. A perfect set up! Knowing Ruby, Leah knew she’d agree to help. And that meant both of them would have to get up and go toward the door together. Which meant they would both end up underneath the mistletoe again. Leah gave herself a mental pat on the back and started getting up.

“Ahhh, wait!” Chika said, stumbling over herself to stop Leah. “Actually, you don’t have to go, I’ll go get the drinks!”

Oh great, another obstacle. And so soon…

“It’s ok Chika-san, I offered,” Leah said, putting on her best service smile. But Chika wasn’t having any of that.

“Uh-uh, I’m not gonna let guests serve me drinks in my own inn! Mito-nee will kill me if she found out that happened!”

“But…”

“It’s sweet of you to want to help Leah,” her sister Sarah chimed in. “But think about if it was at our house. You wouldn’t want any of them serving you drinks either, right?”

Darn it, why did Sarah have to be so sensible? Well she was always sensible, and Leah loved that about her older sister… but why now?

“Fine…” Leah relented. There goes that plan, too.

The rest of the night was pretty much the same. Sometime later they started playing music from a set of home speakers, which eventually devolved into dancing along to some of the choreography they knew from other idol groups. With everyone up, Leah tried again to get Ruby and herself together, and then steer them toward the door, but as expected, with all the bustling about it was pretty much impossible.

And yet another time Leah tried to ask Ruby if she wanted to take a picture. She was getting pretty desperate with her ideas now. But again, when she tried to steer the two of them toward the door, Ruby said a picture that included all the going-on’s of the party would be more scenic. So that failed too.

Who knew getting two people in the same spot could be so darn difficult?

Her frustration was probably showing, because eventually, Ruby started picking up on something wrong too. Ruby snuck up to her, after some of the commotion had died down.

“Leah-chan, are you ok?” Ruby asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Why?”

“Well… you’re scowling.”

“Huh? No, I’m not!” Leah quickly wiped the scowl from her face.

“But you were…” Ruby said, but then let it drop. Arguing about whether she was or wasn’t wouldn’t get to the heart of the matter. “You’ve been acting strange all night, actually. Are you sure you’re ok?”

Leah sighed. “Ruby, I’m fine. You’re worrying for nothing.”

“Well I don’t know if it’s nothing,” Ruby said tentatively, not wanting to provoke. “It’s just… it seemed like you kept wanting to get away from everyone.”

Leah stiffened slightly. Her statement rang true. Or, partly true. Leah was trying to get them _both_ away from everyone, so they’d be under the mistletoe together. But seriously, Ruby was blowing this way out of proportion.

“Ruby, I promise you, I’m ok.”

“I just wondered if… you weren’t having fun with everyone anymore…”

“No, it’s definitely not that.”

“Then what _is_ it?” Ruby said with a force in her voice that made Leah take a mental step back in surprise. Oh gosh, the girl was really worried wasn’t she? For the first time that night, Leah wondered if all of this was really worth it. She really wanted that kiss, but she didn’t mean to make Ruby worry so much.

“Hey, you two,” Mari cooed from a short distance away. “Having a lover’s spat?”

Leah felt her blood rising into a blush.

“You should really take that kind of thing outside.”

“No, we’re not–!”

Ruby grabbed her hand, and she stopped. “Leah-chan, can we? Talk outside?”

Staring into Ruby’s eyes, Leah withered. As much as she wanted to deny Mari the pleasure of her teasing, she really needed to clear this misunderstanding up. And so she relented.

“Sure.”

* * *

The night air was cool and peaceful with no hint of a breeze, and shielded from the noise of the party behind them. The quietness made Leah feel exposed, like the air was empty and ready to accept all your secrets. And Leah had a lot to reveal.

“So what’s up?” Ruby said, turning to face her after having led them out into the night.

Leah let out a defeated sigh and tried to steel herself for the inevitable embarrassment that this was going to result in.

“Ok first of all,” Leah said, hoping to give herself a little buffer before divulging the rest. “It’s nothing to do with me, ok?” Ruby nodded her head, though Leah could tell that she was not completely convinced. “It’s about… us.”

Leah immediately regretted saying that when saw the shock and fear on Ruby’s face.

“Wait wait wait, that came out wrong!” Leah quickly tried to correct herself. “It’s just I feel like where we’re at right now isn’t the best, and I want _us_ to be something more, and…”

Ruby wasn’t looking at her anymore. In fact, she looked like she was about to cry. Leah slapped her palm to her forehead. Why was she so bad at this? Ok, enough talking in circles then, she’d just have to say it.

“Ruby, look,” she said, and grabbed her by the shoulders, forcing Ruby to look at her. “I’m not breaking up with you, ok? I lo… I love you.” She tripped up a little on that last part, but that seemed to work. Ruby’s shoulders visibly slackened, and a relieved smile returned to her.

“Just tell me what it is, then,” Ruby said softly, and placed her hands over Leah’s face. “I’m not going to judge.”

Leah sighed. “Alright, promise you won’t laugh.”

Ruby nodded. “I promise.”

Leah took a deep breath.

“I was… trying to get us to kiss under the mistletoe…”

In the next few seconds, Ruby was silent, and now it was Leah who couldn’t bring herself to look at Ruby. She felt her face gradually grow warmer and warmer, until she was sure she was as red as the Christmas lights around her.

“What mistletoe?” Ruby finally said.

Leah blinked. “It was above the door frame. I put it there, because I wanted us to…. No wait, that’s what you’re wondering about!?”

“So that’s why you were always hanging out by the door…”

“Yeah…”

Ruby finally let out a little giggle, to which she quickly stopped and placed a hand over her mouth.

“Hey, you promised!” Leah whined. The redness on her face had probably reached her ears by now. She wanted to bury herself in some snow to cool off.

“Sorry, sorry!” Ruby said, smiling sheepishly. “It’s just… why did you think you have to go so far as using mistletoe?”

“Because every time I thought we were gonna kiss in the past, you always backed off!”

“Ohh…”

Suddenly Ruby was blushing, which confused Leah. What did she have to be embarrassed about? Ruby took a few more seconds to speak next, looking as though she was pondering something. When she finally did so, she sounded apologetic.

“Sorry, Leah-chan, I’ve always backed away because…. I wasn’t sure if _you_ were ready.”

The world spun around Leah. The next few seconds were probably the most awkward moments in all the girl’s life, as she flashed back to each and every time she thought Ruby had been too shy to kiss her, when really it was the exact opposite – Ruby thought it was Leah who didn’t want to kiss. And she probably had every right to think that too. After all, what indication had Leah ever given to say that she wanted to kiss? The misunderstanding went so much deeper than Leah thought.

Leah buried her face in her hands and groaned. “We’re a bunch of idiots aren’t we?”

Ruby couldn’t stop herself from laughing then. And although Leah felt the heat of embarrassment still warming her face, Ruby’s laughter was so sweet and irresistible that Leah found herself chuckling along.

All things considered, she was probably more of an idiot than Ruby was. After all, she was the one who came up with the dumb idea of using mistletoe. Part of her wondered why Ruby even bothered sticking around with her, but she could only hope that her clumsy attempts at romance were somehow endearing to the redheaded girl.

“So Leah-chan,” Ruby said, after they had finally calmed down from their laugher. “We’re clear now? You’re ok with us… kissing?”

“Y-yeah…”

“Ok, good!” Ruby’s eyes then took on an odd twinkle. “And just so you know, you don’t have to use mistletoe. You can kiss me anytime, ok?”

Leah smiled. “Yeah, ok.”

“ _Any_ time.”

“Right…”

Why did Ruby repeat it? Did she think she didn’t hear? No, the night was too quiet for that. And then there were her eyes, who held Leah’s own and wouldn’t let her go, as though she waiting for her. Expecting her… to do what?

And then it hit her.

 _Leah, you’re more than an idiot, you’re a complete moron_ , she thought and gave herself a metaphorical slap in the face. _She wants you to kiss her! Like, right now!_

Was it to recompense her for all the failed attempts at a mistletoe kiss? It didn’t matter. They were both ready, and they both wanted it. They had just said as much to each other – that was the whole point of them clearing up that misunderstanding.

So Leah swallowed, and stepped closer to Ruby. Their faces were only inches apart, and Leah could feel Ruby’s breath warm against the cool night air.

Ruby closed her eyes.

They were really going to do it, and the sudden acknowledgement made Leah’s heart pounded in her chest, reverberating all the way up to her skull. She almost backed out of the kiss. But the way Ruby was presenting herself, leaning slightly forward, her lips slightly apart… it was so enticing, and Leah knew she wanted this, more than anything.

She closed the gap between them.

The first thing she felt was the softness of Ruby’s lips, and then the warmth of her so close to her body, and then a tug on her shoulder, as Ruby pulled on her sleeve, and she sank deeper into the kiss. It was like she was melting, all her sensations and thoughts were blending together. To her surprise, Leah found herself letting out a small whimper. She’d be more embarrassed about it if she wasn’t feeling so desperate, so _wanting_ of more. And Ruby obliged, wrapping her arms around Leah’s neck and pulling her closer.

Everything was Ruby. Her pillow-like lips between her own, her taste, slightly tangy but sweet nonetheless, her hair caught in her own hands, and the warmth shared between them.

* * *

When they finally parted, they were both out of breath and glossy eyed. Leah didn’t know how much time had passed. It probably only lasted a minute at most, but it felt as though the moment had been stretched into a million and then into eternity.

All she knew was, it felt good.

“That was… nice,” Ruby whispered. They were still hugging each other by the waist, and her words did not need to be loud to reach Leah’s ears.

“Yeah,” Leah whispered back, dreamily, the high of the kiss still on the edges of her mind.

“Merry Christmas,” Ruby said with a grin.

“That was some Christmas gift,” Leah muttered, but she found herself smiling back.

And then they were both blushing, coming out of their stupor, the full realization of what they just did settling in.

“It was worth the wait.”

“Yeah?” Ruby said. And Leah nodded in affirmation. “Then… do you want to do it again?”

Breathless, Leah nodded, and they closed their eyes again, leaning in.

But just as they were about to kiss again, a piercing voice from behind them sounded, getting closer. “Hey, how long are you two gonna take out there? Oh…!”

It was Mari.

As soon as they heard, Leah and Ruby disentangled themselves from each other in a hurry. But it was too late. Mari had saw them leaning in, and the glint in her eyes danced with that secret knowledge.

“I’ll…just leave you be,” she said, unable to suppress a smirk from forming in the corner of her mouth. “Take as long as you want.” Mari waved her hands graciously as she turned to head back inside.

“No! We’re done here!” Leah quickly sputtered. She looked to her girlfriend for support. “Right, Ruby?”

Ruby’s face was as red as if she ate one of Yoshiko’s fallen angel tears, and she could only nod.

“Let’s go back inside!”

Taking Ruby’s hand, and faces burning, they both followed the snickering Mari back to the party.

**Author's Note:**

> *Labor Thanksgiving Day is like the Japanese equivalent of our Thanksgiving Day, though celebrated for different reasons. I just thought to put this note in case there's any confusion!
> 
> It was my first time writing RubyLeah, and I hope I was able to get their characters right. I also feel like some places were a bit rushed, but in the end I hope the story was a fun and cute read!


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